Grady Ranch

On April 10, 2012, Lucasfilm announced its intention to drop its Grady Ranch film studio project. The stated reason was neighborhood opposition and the threat of legal challenge that could further delay the project.

On July 13, 2012, in an effort to clear up a vast number of misconceptions about the timing of state agencies' review of the project, the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board wrote a letter to Lucasfilm (the applicant) in which it clearly reconstructs the timeline of the water quality permit application and the many meetings with the applicant in which concerns about the effects of the project on Miller Creek were raised by state staff. MCL recommends that community members who are concerned about the review process take a look at this letter and timeline, available here.

Background:

Of the 239 acres remaining after Lucas granted 800 acres to Marin County Parks, 52 are developable. An Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and Master Plan for developing 456,000 square feet at Big Rock Ranch and Grady Ranch were adopted by the county in 1996. Grady Ranch was Phase II of that plan.

While acknowledging the general popularity of Lucasfilm in the County, MCL had serious reservations about Lucasfilm's Big Rock development plans in the early 1990s due to non conformance with agricultural zoning. The Phase II development would have allowed office and industrial uses in an area zoned for housing and agriculture. The development site at the eastern end of Grady Ranch is directly adjacent to the western-most residential neighborhood in Lucas Valley. MCL’s concerns focused on the massive reshaping of the landscape and Miller Creek. The orientation of the development is perpendicular to Lucas Valley road, extending into a narrow valley at the base of Big Rock Ridge. Whereas the Big Rock Ranch facility (pictured as seen from the Big Rock Ridge trail) has a low-profile and adapts to the existing landforms, the Grady Ranch facility would have rebuilt the landscape to fit the structures.